Kenny Atkinson sounds off on why Cavaliers lost to Knicks in season opener

Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson was not shy about why his team fell to the New York Knicks in the season opener 119-111.

Oct 22, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers head coach Kenny Atkinson coaches against the New York Knicks during the first quarter at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images | Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Finally, the 2025-2026 NBA season got underway with Cleveland Cavaliers fans excited to see their team that has massive expectations to win the NBA title entering their season-opener against the New York Knicks.

The Cavaliers entered the game with some new faces and needed to adjust the rotation. Cleveland already has three guys out with injuries, including forward De'Andre Hunter (knee), guard Darius Garland (toe), and guard Max Strus (foot).

That left Cleveland head coach Kenny Atkinson in a bind to start the season as he tried to knock off the Knicks with multiple new faces. Backup forward Sam Merrill took over for Hunter, and 2024 first-round pick Jaylon Tyson made only his fourth career start in the NBA.

In addition, offseason signings Larry Nance Jr. and Lonzo Ball entered the rotation for the first time, even though this is Nance's second stint in Cleveland. Rookie second-round pick Tyrese Proctor made his NBA debut with the team.

New York got off to a 65-50 halftime lead, putting Cleveland behind the eight ball early. Donovan Mitchell's 21 points in the third quarter helped the Cavaliers storm back to tie the game at 87-87 going into the fourth quarter. There just wasn't enough juice at the end as the Knicks took down the Cavaliers 119-111.

While speaking to the media after the game, Atkinson credited his new guys for stepping up in a tough spot, but acknowledged that having new players in the rotation played a role in the loss.

"We had five new guys in our rotation tonight. Five, and I'm glad we played all five of them. I thought they did well, all did really well, but there's going to be some growing pains."

#Cavs coach Kenny Atkinson after loss vs #Knicks in the season opener:

“We had 5 new guys in our rotation tonight. Five…
There will be some growing pains”. pic.twitter.com/y6BJAdF12U

— Darko Dželetović (@DarkoBasketball) October 23, 2025

Mitchell finished the game leading the team with 31 points, while adding five assists, two rebounds, and two steals. Evan Mobley
also had a solid game with 22 points, eight rebounds, and three steals.

As for the new starters, Merrill performed well with 19 points, including going five of 10 from the three-point line. Tyson played just 20 minutes, scoring five points and two rebounds.

The reliable veteran Nance had 10 points and six rebounds in 17 minutes of play. Ball had six assists, but struggled from the field, hitting just one of seven shots to end the game with three points. Proctor had a decent debut with the Cavaliers as he scored five points and dished out two assists in 16 minutes on the court.

It was always going to be tough for the Cavaliers to go into New York with the injuries and changes they had in game one and try to win it. The foundation is at least there and with 81 games to go, Cleveland is still in good shape to power through the season.